Suction cleaner and dust-separator.



I. H. SPENCER. sUcTIoN CLEANER-AND DUST sBPAnATon.

Patented oct.20,19'14 3 SHEETS-SHEET 1'.

APPLICATION FILED ROYAN, 1907.

.' /f- A o, IraH.Sper)cr.

' ATTORNEY I. H. SPENCER. l sUcTIoN CLEANER AND DUST SEPARATOR.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 22, 1907-.

' Patented 001;.20, 1914.

3 SHEETS-"SHEET 2.

/Ni/EA/o Irc: H. Spelycer. av

W/TNESSES ,4 TTOHNEY I. 11. SPENCER. BUGTION CLEANER AND DUST SEPABATl.

1,1 14,9.. 4 Annuario! rmzn'loynmlsoz. Panted oct-20,1914

Y 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

. l-Tl l.. 103 i 105C UNITED szriitriis onirica;

IBA I-I. SPENCER, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, A'SSIGNOR TO THEISPENCEBTURBNEf CLEANER COMPANY, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTI- v CUT.

SUCTION CLEANER .ANlD DUST-SEPARATOB.

specification afnemers raient. l Patented Ouf, 20, 19,14,

Applicatlomled N Member. 22, 1907. Serial No..403,318.;

To alt whom it ma :concern:

Be it known t at I, IRA H. SPENCER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Hartford, in the county' of Hartford and State of Connecticut, (whose post-oflice address is Hartford, Connecticut,) have invented 'certain new andv useful Improvements in Suction Cleaners and Dust-Sepaiators, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, whereby any one skilled inthe art may make and use the saine.

The invention, as indicated by the title, relates to acleaning apparatus, and more particularly to such a device having special inherent featuresl of dust separation incidental to the mechanism for creating an= airi pressure or suction. l

rlhe present invention contemplates `a cleaning device, in which the suctiony for drawing olf the dirt is inducedf in a. most eliicien't and economic manner-and the suc tion apparatus employed: 1n the device is practically unlimited, as to the volume of iiuid drawn through the cleaning tools and at the saine time maintains a substantially constant pressure or suction eii'ect at the iiilct or inouthofthe cleaning tubes.A

In devices of the priorA ant, so far as. known, positive suction apparatus has beeneinployed, including apiston pump or a rotary piston. pump or' positive blower.

lither of these devices (rive a variablev vacuum or suction depending upon the contraction or closure of the opening oi'. orifice through the cleaning tools. The present inl i'entionhas to do with a non-positive suc-` tion apparatus so constructed that the requi-l site vacuum or suction to induce air pres-- sui-e or. suction is maintained at a substan-u tially constantl pressure with an unlimited volume of air passing through the apparatus. The teiin1nonpositive suotionappaiatus is employed herein in contra-distinction to suction inducing apparatus,.such= as exhaust pumps of vVarious types whichto bc understood that the device herein de ing air, gear pumps, eccentric 'vane pumps i scribed induces or draws a current of air fromI the inlet orl cleaning tools when the ,orifice through said tools is not completelu andx perfectly closed. but Wheircompletelv` and perfectlv closed, noair passes thenetliorugh and the suction upon the closure,l whatever it may be, will not increase; rlllie objects of' the invention are to prol vide a simple` and extremely efficient suction apparatus, practically unlimited' as to the volumeof' au.' taken in by the mechanism, andiwith a: substantially constant pressure or suction, and incidentally, ay substantially constant degree of vacuum.

From theabove, it will be-seen that with the' inlet tubes or tool orifices completely closed, thereI will be created, a vacuum at the inlet. This. vacuum is alwayssubstantially constant inasmuch as-the-device is so arranged that the rassure or suction in ducing apparatus willI createaV contain suction, with .a varying volume of". fluid assing therethrough andpevenwhen the om'oes are completely closed,4 thevacuum@ .or suctionwill be substantiallyv the same as when they are open. The conditions described are quite different where a positivesuction device as, for instance, ani exhaust pump is emplo ed. In the-latter-instance, the clos'- ing o the inletoriice causes the pump tol increase the degree of: vacuum, wliilewith the orifices fully open, the suction or vacuum effect at the cleaning tool orifices may drop below .the ,proper Workingpressure.A e Afurtlierobject is to provide a suction apparatus which,.wliile it createsrthe necessary pressure oii vacuum, will automatically throw oil andiseparateall dust', dirt, or extraneous substancesfrom the fluid passing through thel suction inducing apparatus, as said iiuid: passes therethrough.- A still further objectis. to arrange` a series -ofi dust or dirt collecting devices-.which will separate from the vit-iated or impregfk nated. fluid debris of varying weights andvdensities as the fluid` bearing said materials is assing through said apparatus.

still furtherobject is toiprovide, in connectionwith.- the suction and separating apparatus, positive extracting means anx. traps for. collecting debris of varying consistency. i l. Referring to'fthe drawings: Figure l 1s a f central longitudinal sectional view of the.

Fig. 5 is a detail view of the bottom of one,

of the cleaning tools showing the slot or opening.

In the apparatus herein described particular attention has been given to securing a most ellicient method, and apparatus for creating a substantially constant pressure or vacuum lwhich will pass practically an unlimited volume of uid impregnated to a greater or less extent with dust, dirt or moisture and at a substantially uniform pressure through .the inlet orifice and through the cleansing tools attached thereto. These tools are shown in Figs. 4 and 5 of the drawings. 1 A

The apparatus consists essentially of a multiple-stage turbine blower, or exhauster, of efficient design, and as shown herein, has a plurality of impellers each arranged in a separate com artment with deflectors for i leading the air froml the periphery of the impeller of one compartment through a central' orifice into the next succeeding compartment, and arranging in connection with 'such a multiple stage turbine blower, or exhauster, receptacles or` traps for receiving and collecting the material with which the fluid 'is impregnated as it enters and is driven through the apparatus.

It is understood that it is old in the art to employ positive suction apparatus to secure a pressure or vacuum for cleaning tools attached thereto. cluding posiitve piston pumps and rotary piston pumps or positive blowers great ditliculty has been experienced, not only by the necessity of placing intermej diary water cleansers for lthe impregnated fluid, but also from the wear land uncertain operation of said positive suction inducing mechanism through the wear due to the passage of grit to the closely fitted parts. A

further disadvantage has resulted 1n the u se of such apparatusl through the varying vacuum or pressure induced thereby. For instance, the piston pump or positive blower of a definite capacity will pass a specific volume of fluid at a given ressure. If, for any l reason the inlet area t rough the tools or dust collecting apparatus is varied, the pressure or vacuum is immediately varied. If the inlet areas are-,more or less restricted by being held close to the fabric, or the floor,

or are tilted to collect particlesof greatery or less size, the vacuum or pressure is 1mmediately varied. If said tools are held firmly and closely upon a fabric, the vacuum or pressure is increased to such a degree as -gerous extent.

In such devices inv to injure the na or texture of said fabric. If the inlet ori ce of the cleaning tool is opened by lack of intimate contact with the fabric for the purpose of picking up larger particles of material, the vacuum or pressure is immediately decreased to such an appreciable extent that it will not cause proper cleansing. In other words, in all such positive suction inducing apparatus the device must first be of such a capacity as to provide a known' suction for the maximum cleaning effect, and if the orifice of the cleaning tools is decreased by contact with material to be cleaned, said vacuum or pressure will immediately increase to a dan- For instance, a positive exhaust pump, with its capacity determined by its cylinder and piston movement, will suck up and discharge a certain quantity of fluid with the inlet of a given size, if the inlet is restricted by partially closing it as, for instance, placing a cleaning tool upon a fabric, the suction upon the fabric will be increased and the more the inlet is restrict-ed, the greater will be the suction. On the other hand, it is impossible within the limits of practice to provide a positive suction apparatus of the class above deiined which will permit the use of orifices in the cleaning apparatus sutlicient to vary the conditions of picking up small particles and very large particles or debris. Furthermore, in such -apparatus the passage of dirt, dust or grit,

whether wet or dry, through the apparatus seriously impairs its usefulness as the ciliciency of the apparatus due to the cutting of the grit is seriously linterfered with.

To overcome the objections hereinbefore noted, the present invention contemplates the use of a multiple stage turbine blower, or exhauster, all the parts of which will receive, act upon and pass or throw olf the particles with which the fluid is impregnated vwithout the liability of endangering the elliciency of the apparatus. Substantially, such a multiple stage, turbine blower, or exhauster, as forms a part of this invention, is shown and more particularly described as to detail in a co-pending application, Serial Number 876,608, tiled May 3l, 1907, In the present invention, however, the multiple stage, turbine blower, or exhauster, is arranged to not onlyycreate an efficient pressure or suction for taking up the impregnated fluid, but automatically separates and throws oli all of the heavier particles which are contained in the impregnated fluid. It separates and throws olf these particles as the fluid is carried through the apparatus, and the iluid is thus thoroughly clariied. The arrangement is such that no matter how vitiated or impregnated the fluid may be upon entering the' inlet orifice, clean, clear fluid is thrown out ofthe exhaust side of the apparatus.

ruine Referring to the drawin and partici!- larly to Figs. 1 and 2 thereo y, there is shown a casing 1 of cylindrical form, having headers 2 3. preferably provided with central journal boxes 4 5, .affording a sup mit tor anti-ilotion bearings @-7 for the main 'blower shaft `8. 1n the joui-noi box i there is arranged .a thrust bearing 9 which, is rende adjustable and taires up all thrust upon the end t0 otdhehaft, thereby maintainingproper an e cient running pi tion :ier the various impellers. Upon the shaft d there are mounted a plurality of hubs Eli, secured to ahi@i are disk-like pint@ 12 having extending at right angles i'ifoin the face thereof a series oit blades 13.

These conssitute the impeilers, and of course, they may be varied in number depending rapen the degree ci vacuum or pressure desiiabla and the volume of fluid to be passed through the apparatus. @secured to the casing 1 are dish-like plate 1li conforming in general contour to the shape ci the impeller blades bearing on the opposite face from said impeller blades a series of dehector plates 15. These plates 15 entendy radially of the plates 14 and are curved, "las shown in Fig. 4 from the inner periphery of the casing 1 toward a contrai cfriiine 16 termed about the center l oi the disks 1li. 'lihese openings afford communication from one impeller chamber toi the nent succeeding chamber, and it will be noted that the disirs form chambers Within which the inipeliers may revolve.

one ehd et the casing 1 is an intersecting casing 17 centrally arranged with reiter-ence to `which is an inlet tube 18 to lwhich mayr be connected any desired nun1- ber oi inlet tubes and cleaning tools. This casing 17 is of cylindrical form, as shown herein, and has transversely arranged Within it a cylindrical dust receptacle 19 Which rests in a casing 20 of similar form, also arranged Within the casing 17. The dust receptacle 19 is ofcourse open on the top and is provided with a handle 2l by which it may be Withdrawn when it is desired to enipty said receptacle. The casingl 20 has an upwardly projecting neck 22 surroundv ing the inlet tube 18 and somewhat larger in diameter than said tube, rI his necessitates the iluid entering the tube 18 making a short turn as it passes about the lower end oic the inlet tube 18 and up over the upper edge of the projecting neck 22 before it enters the chamber 23 of the casing 17. The parts described, thus form a trap for collecting the heavier particles which are carried by the fluid as it passes therethrough. rllhis chamber 23 is of course in direct communication with the casing 1 and its various impellers and the course of the Huid from the inlet through the iinpeller chambers, is as indicated by the arrows. It will be noted device at comparatively low speed, although that said fluid passes from the periphery of the ller of one compartment against the de -ton 'blades arranged in said compartment and is then diverted by said blades through the center of the deiiector blade fm disk to the next vsucceeding inipeller.

It Will of course be readily understood that the [huid drawn into the apparatus passes through the various impeller chambers and through theA exhaust side of the said 'iuild 1with its suspended materialsis rotated very rapidly in each of the impeller charaktere` It is also apparent that with the apparatus herein shown and described, the pressure in each succeeding impeller chamber is raised beyond the pressure of the next preceding chamber. Therefore, there is a greater pressure Within the last chamber than Within the rst, and oonsequentiy the fluid is kept moving through the device in a sudicient volume to effect eiiicient work at the inlet nozzles or cleaning tools.

Only the .heavier particles held in suspen-sion by the incoming fluid are separated ltherefrom and deposited in the receptacle 19. The lighter particles are drawn into the impeller chambers and rapidly whirled by the various ilnpeliers until they are thrown oil thereby, or forced into the final cleansing' screen 33. As the impregnated iiuid passes through the various impeller chambers it is given a very high rotary velocity and finally passes to the last iinpeller 24, Where there being no deflector blades, said impeller 24 gives an extremely high rotary velocity to the impregnated fluid, throwing oil" all matter held in suspension, into the receptacle 25,shown herein as located at one side of the impellers.

Arranged adjacent to the last impeller 211 is an annular disk 29, forming the end Wall of the last impeller chamber.. This has al central opening 30 of comparatively small. dimensions which compels a concentration of the revolving fluid and forms a vortex below the periphery of the impeller. Opposite the central opening of this annular disk 29 is a delector plate 31 underlying a passageway or channel 32 which communicates With the interior of a positive collector or screen 33. The arrangement of the lastinipeller 24 with the vortex opening 30 is such that ynothing but the very iinest and most insignificant particles, held in suspension by the Huid, are carried through said opening 30. All of the substantial particles are thrown olf by the impeller 24 into the receptacle 25. This receptacle 25 is similar in form to the receptacle 19 and may be Withdrawn by a handle 26 Whenever the lookin bolts 27 are released. It rests in ice y the interior of the casing 1. 1

is of cylindrical form and is sup orted from the top 34 of a cylindrical casing 35 provided with an' exhaust opening 36 havin a vhand hole rovided with a cover 37. he cylindrical ag-like screen 33 is open at its lower end and is secured at its bottom or open end as at 38 andl throughout its length is smaller in diameter than the casing 35, thus providing ample fluid space between the'scre'en 33 and casing 35 and exhaust 36, Just below the open end of the screen 33 there is arranged a deflector plate 39 so lol cated with reference to the opening 32l that the bag or scieen 33 may be shaken to throw `down any particles of dust or dirt which have collected therein. These particles will thus be carried downward over the plate 39 and the plate 31 to the receptacle 25.

`From the above description 1t is apparent that although heavy particles, such as mevratus from impeller chamber to impeller tallic substances, and; in fact everything which is borne along by the rust of fluid without being held in suspension and forming a vitiated fluid will be caught in the receiving chamber 19. The finer though sus# pended particles of greater' or less density will be rapidly whirled through .the appa-I chamber, and by the 'centrifugal action 'of said impellers will be driven off, as illustrated in Fig. 1, by the last impeller 24 and will be retained in receiving chamber 25. At this point the fluid is practically purified and only the very finest particles of dust which would be hardly appreciable are carried through the vortex opening 30 and dev flccted upward and into the bag-like screen 33. This screen is preferably of woven form such as a fabric and of such a mesh Aand texture as to retain even the finest particles and is used more particularly to prevent the passage of germs and particles which might be deleterious to heal In practice the screen 33'needs little or no attention, and may from time to time be violently shaken by opening the hand hole ,37, whereupon whatever particles are clinging thereto -will be shaken down into the receptacle 25.

Of course it is understood, and in fact the drawings show that the centrifugal action of the impeller blades may be employed at various points to secure a collection of the material carried in the fluid, andof course with a number of collecting devices is shown lin Figs. 3 and 4-of the drawings, where the impeller tools and intake casings'and'parts are substantially identical with those heretofore described. In these drawings'the casing 100 is. connected with the inlet chamber 101 which has a dust receiving chamber 102 and intake tube 103` as well as the screen chamber 104 and screen 105. There is also shown in connection with the intake tube 103 flexible collector tubes 103b connecting with the dust collecting tools orhoods.103". The impeller chamber 106, annular defiector plates 107 and'deflector blades 108 are substantially identical in form and arrange- -ment with like parts described in connection with Figs. 1 and 2. At various points adjacent to the casing 100 are arranged receiving chambers, illustrated in Fig. 3, as four in number and indicated at 109-110- 111 and 112. These in each instance areinclosed chambers connecting with the re- 115 and 116t The rece tacle 109 receives the lparticles thrown oil y the first in ipellei` 117, thus .taking up the heavier particles. As the air is carried throu hthe succeeding impeller chambers less eavy particles are thrown off into receptacle "[110 by the impeller'118. The next receptacle 111 receives still lighter particles from the impeller y119, and still lighter particles are thrown off by the impeller" 120 into the re ceptacle 112, the impeller` 120 practically clarifies the fiuid passing re air -up to the screen 105, but whatever slight accumulation may be retained by the screen 105 may be shaken down over the plate 121 into the receptacle 112.`

From the above arrangement of receiving chambers arranged in connection with the rapidly rotating impellers, it will be seen that'the device may be arranged to suit the exigencies of any particular case-for 1nstance, in sho cleaning where it is desirable to reclaim filings and materials of diierent weights, the proper number of receptacles maybe arranged appurtenant to the most efiicient im eller for reclaiming the particles of certain mown weights and ythis arrange therethrough. A still further practical a vantage results from a segregation of the The cleaningtools are only shown in connection with Fig. 4, although it is apparent that tools of various sorts may be applied lto the device shown in either of the figures. iThese tools which are shown in Figs. 4 and l not require asifting of.

spective impeller compartments 113-114--V eti ment precludes the possibility of injury. to .the blower by theheavier partlcles passm Eil 5, comprise a hood havin-g an open slot 103c at the under side through which the impregnated air and particles of various sizes may be drawn, and passing through tubular connections, find their way into the cleaning apparatus. i

As to the possibilities and advantages of the herein described suctionv apparatus, the ellou'ing facts are of interest: In a piston pump apparatus having a lQ-inch piston and a 6-inch stroke running at 100 revolu` tions per minute and exhausting a vacuum measured at l5 inches of mercury, the apparatus will exhaust about 40 cubic feet of free air per minute when the pistons and valves are absolutely tight. The multiple stage turbine exhauster, herein described, using the same power, Will exhaust over 500 .cubic feet of :tree air per minute, and at the same time maintains a suliicient and constant vacuum for edective Work. AWith such conditions it is possible to use a cleaning tool having a much larger inlet area than that Which it is possible to employ with the positive piston pump apparatus. For instance, With the multiple stage turbine exhauster or nonpositive suction device `herein described it is possible to use a maximum slot opening of gWXlO or QWXSO, thus giving a maXimum inlet area for cleaning ofilto 111 square inches. This is some five to nine times greater than the maximum permitted in practice with a positive piston pump or suction device such as referred to above,- t 'ivl'iere the maximum'slot is {'XIO or 12,

with a maximum area of 1g` square inches. lt Will alsp be seen that the apparatus herein described is particularly well'adapted to and ellicient for all classes of cleaning. It has a substantially free air passage from the collecting tool through the entire device to the retarding screen or final cleanser 33. Of course it has a trap for heavier articles or particles carried by the great volume of air, but dust and dirt, both Wet and dry, may be carried practically through the ap. paratus, being separated by the centrifugal action as it moves and Will not affect the retarding screen or final cleanser as the latter is at the outlet end and receives practically clear, clean fluid. Such. an arrangement With the advantages of the final cleansing screen removed from all liability of injury through clogging, etc., is made possible by the use of the multiple stage turbine, which maintains a constant pressure or vac` uum and throws oli' all deleterious matter from the fluid before said fluid passes through the inal screen.

Obviously, the various details might be varied and changed to a considerable degree.

. Without departing from the spirit or intent of the invention.

The device-herem shown and described is somewhat simllar 'to the devices shown details ofthe co-pending applications.

lVhat l claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a dust separating apparatus, a case having an inlet chamber, a closed dust receptacle opening out of the case, impellers rotatably mounted in the case, deflector plates secured Within the case at a point adjacent to the opening into the receptacle,

and means for decreasing the area of the opening from the impellers at the periphery thereof to accelerate the flow of fluid therefrom. j

2. ln a dust separating apparatus, a case having an inlet chamber, a dust receptacle openingout of the case, a deflcctor plate secured Within the case adjacent to the edge of the opening into the dust receptacle, and an impeller having a Wall arranged transverse to its axis, said Wall and deflector plate converging at a point adjacent to the opening from the impeller case into the dust receptacle.

3. ln a dust separating apparatus, a case having an inlet chamber, a dust receptacle opening out of the case, a dellecting plate extending in a direction oblique to the axis of said case and lixed thereto at a point adjacent to one edge of the opening into the dust receptacle, an impeller rotatably mounted in the case and having a. Wall arranged transverse to the ,axis of said case whereby the deflecting plate and Wall of the impeller converge to a point adjacent to the opening into the dust receptacle to accelerate the flow of fluid and increase the separating' action.

4. In a dust separating apparatus, a case providedwith an inlet chamber and having a plurality of communicating impeller compartments connected with the inlet chamber, a series of rotary impellers located in said compartments for producing increased air pressure in each of the succeeding chambers, said case having a plurality of openings of material Width through its Wall located substanitally in the plane of rotation of some of the impellers, and closed receiver chambers located opposite said openings and sepa rated from the chamber Within the case to receive material thrown off by said impellers through said openings. 5. In a dust separating apparatus, a case provided with an inletl chamber and having a plurality of communicating impeller compartments connected With the inlet chamber, said case having an opening located substnntia'lly in the plane of rotation of the thrown ofi' by the impellers through said impell'ers at each end of the case and also openings'. having openings located substantially in the plane of rotation of intermediate impeilers, IRA H SPENCER' and Closed receiver chambers separa-ted from Vitnesses:

the chamber Within the case and in line ARTHUR I. DAY, with said openings to receive material WILBUR PAINE. 

